Flooring for buildings



(No Model.)

-J. MARTHALER.

FLOORING FOR BUILDINGS.

No. 394,588. Patented Dec. 18, 1888.

H 1 LJ 122 :5555. mvem-rng.

XmZk/WMM UNITED STAT S PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN MARTHALER, OF JERSEY CITY, NElV JERSEY.

FLOORING FOR BUILDINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 394,588, dated December 18, 1888.

Application filed August 23, 1888. Serial No. 283,571. (No model.)

T 0 all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN MARTHALER, of Jersey City, Hudson county, State of New J ersey, hax e invented an Improved Flooring for Buildings, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to those floor-planks of a building that are placed directly above the gas and water pipes. These planks, known commonly as shutters, must frequently be taken up, so that access to the pipes may be had. Heretofore the joint between the two shutters was generally formed by a tongue and groove, the lower flange of the groove being cut a wayto perm it theshutters to be raised; but this construction not only weakens the joint, but prevents the shutter from being raised when the wood has swelled under the influence of moisture. I propose to form a joint of such peculiar construction that it is perfectly tight and that it can still be readily opened.

The invention consists in the "arious features of improvement, more fully pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical transverse section of my improved flooring. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the same with the two shutters removed.

The letters a (1 represent two of a series of floor-planks, such planks being connected together by tongues and grooves, usual.

I) Z) are the two shuttersthat is, those two floor-planks which are placed directly above a gas or water pipe, 0, and which must be removed if access to the pipe is to be had. The two shutters are connected to their respective floor-plan ks by tongues and grooves, as shown but the two edges of the shutters that face each other are made step-shaped, so that the shutters form a lap-joint between them. The upright sides of the jointthat is, the risers of the step-shaped edgesare cut slanting, as shown, so as to form obtuse angles with the horizontal surface of the joint.

It will be seen that by lifting the shutters in a line with their joint the latter will readily open to permit the removal of the shutters.

In replacing the shutters the slanting edges of the lap-joint will cause the crowding of the shutters toward the floor-planksthat is, as one slanting edge bears against the other, the shutters will be forced to move laterally into their seats. Thus, even if the wood is swelled, the joint will readily close.

hat I claim is The combination of floor-planks a with shutters b, that are connected to the floor-planks by tongue-and-groove joints, and that are con nected to one another by a lap-joint, the upright sides of the lap-joint being inclined, substantially as specified.

JOIIN MARTHALER.

\Vitnesses:

F. V. BRIESEN, ALFRED J ONGHMANS. 

